stripped back strategy

stripped back strategy

The world of brand

strategy is full of fluff 

Too much talk, too little action. 

Wordy decks that gather dust. 

Endless pages and frameworks. 

Unnecessary embellishments. 

Complexity posing as cleverness. 

If the only person who understands the 

strategy is the strategist, what’s the point?

Good strategy is clarity. 

It’s knowing what matters 

and cutting what doesn’t. 

Saying more, with less.

No 200 page decks. 

Just simple, sticky stories. 

That’s what we do at bare bones. 

Brands, stripped back to the powerful essentials.

Simple is hard

The truth is, getting to a simple strategy is tough. 

Which is why so many brands either have a complex strategy, or none at all.

When the strategy isn’t simple, you can feel it:

Everyone’s saying something different.

Teams lack autonomy. 

Long documents gather dust. 

Strategy constantly needs explaining.

Campaigns keep changing direction.

sound familiar?

So, how do we get to simple?

We follow what we call The Simple Loop - a cycle of clarity, action and memory.

It’s how we turn complex thinking into focused strategy that actually gets used.

Intrigued to hear more?

yes

  • Founder, Otherway

    “The thing about Ed is he just really cares.

    He cares about his work; He cares about his clients; He cares about his colleagues;

    He also cares about the world and doing the right thing.

    If we can all learn one thing from Ed it’s that caring is important. It makes you great at your job and what’s more, just a lovely human.”

  • Founder, Anyway

    “Working with Ed was a super collaborative and enjoyable experience.

    He has a knack for taking complex challenges and distilling them down to what really matters, making the strategy not just easy to understand, but easy to act on.

    His strategic thinking is razor-sharp, yet he delivers it in a way that feels intuitive and achievable."

  • Brand Director, The Whisky Exchange

    “Having Ed on the brand development project for The Whisky Exchange was invaluable. 

    He brings hugely insightful contributions, and he does so with passion and enthusiasm. 

    The whisky world was new to Ed but you’d never have known that by the end of the project. I trusted Ed to interpret feedback exactly as needed and the response was always on point. 

    I’d very happily work with Ed again!”

  • Senior Brand Manager, Inch’s Cider

    “Ed was a great partner in shaping the strategy for our new cider brand.

    He helped us identify problems, made complicated ideas feel simple and clear, and was a pleasure to work alongside.”

  • Founder, Goodrays

    “Ed is a joy to work with.

    He took the time and effort to get to know our brand and understand our vision and then deliver meaningful creative ideas, campaigns and messages that would resonate with our audience."

© EMT Studio Ltd.